WASHINGTON, D.C. — Astronaut Don Merkley has space-walked six times, repairing broken latches, attaching antennae to the space station — and praying over all the earth.

“I intercede for each continent as I pass over it,” says Merkley, an evangelical Christian. “I have the high ground, spiritually speaking, over the prince of the air. It’s a tremendous faith boost.”

But his superiors at NASA are not enthusiastic. Last month they discovered Merkley’s blog, CovertheEarthInPrayer, where he talks freely about his “orbiting prayer efforts” and publishes lists of topics he is praying for on each mission. Apparently in response, NASA issued a memo reminding astronauts that they should focus entirely on NASA business while in space. Merkley took it as a direct slap.

“That’s like telling me not to think of my wife while I’m working,” he says. “It’s ridiculous.”

Since then, the normally insular Christian aeronautics community has rallied behind the veteran astronaut. Some fans tote placards at shuttle launches with slogans like “National Atheist Space Administration.” Merkley has become a bona fide hero to many.

“We follow every blog post and pray for him when he’s directly overhead,” says Janet Dewar, a mother of six who uses Merkley’s efforts in her homeschool curriculum. “You don’t realize how encouraging it is to know that someone sixty miles up is bathing the planet in prayer.”

Merkley asks believers to partner with him during his space-walks.

A recent Merkley blog post read, “I’m going up next week to do some repairs on the Space Station. I’ll be ‘prayer walking’ the entire time from 9 am to 1 pm GMT. Join me in prayer when I pass over!”

Many churches organize all-night prayer meetings while Merkley is space-walking. Some even send him lists of their own prayer requests so he can offer them “from high places.”

Merkley says he doesn’t want to make trouble at NASA, but his ambitions are grand.

“I hope to prayer walk the moon and claim it for the Kingdom one day,” he says. •